Side By Side With Me
by Dana'sFairytales
Summary: AU Cassandra is sent back in time, to before the curse of the shattered sight is cast, to try and prevent the future she grew up in. Where the Snow Queen succeeded.
1. Chapter 1

_**Bold/Italic is the future**_

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><p>Cassandra fell with a thump to the ground. Her long dark brown hair, was pulled up into a messy pony tail, the lose bits falling across her eyes. Having scraped the hair out of her face, she immediately leapt to her feet, wiping the gravel from her hands, and picking it from where it stuck to her fingerless gloves. She steely eyes looked around, the stretch of road she had arrived on. It was lined with the trees of the forest she had grown up in. The forest though as it currently was, was a very different one from the place she knew.<p>

She eyes looked around for any hint of when and where she was. Adjusting her backpack to fit more comfortably on her shoulders, she carefully headed forward, to a sign she could just see in the distance, eyes still darting around, as she moved closer to the well maintained tree line.

"One day, you'll take over this road." She muttered under her breath, as she stroked her hand over the bark of the wood. She was now close enough to read the sign, so came away from the shelter of the trees. The sign read "Now Leaving, StoryBrooke."

"Home sweet home." She sighed bitterly.

She turned her back on the pristine sign, she had only ever seen it covered in dirt, plants growing over it. A relic of the old times. She knew it was time to head into the town, find out exactly when she had arrived.

She went into the forest, she preferred walking under the cover of trees, the place she knew best. The idea of going into StoryBrooke filled her with dread, even though she knew this was not the place she knew.

Cassandra picked worriedly at a loose thread in her gloves. This forest was not like hers, it was filled with cheerful bird song, and the trees had no obvious signs of conflict on their bark.

"No wonder they want this world back." She smiled at a small bird perched on a nearby branch.

She heard a twig snap nearby, and she was immediately in battle mood, daggers drawn in both hands, as she leapt silently, behind a fallen trees roots.

She couldn't help herself smile, as she saw Little John, with his crossbow appear, she wanted to run into his arms, but it suddenly hit her that he would have no idea who she was. Behind him appeared a raggedly handsome man, and a small dark haired boy.

She put her daggers away and watched the three of them, she couldn't help but get caught up in the man and his child playing. He must be Robin Hood, she thought to herself, a sadness filling her.

"Come on Roland, time for you to go back to camp, while we hunt." He smiled, scooping up the boy.

Cassandra had to bite into her jacket, to stop her giggles erupting. That cute little boy was Roland, the fierce warrior. She imagined the look on his face, if she told him she had seen him as a little boy. Perhaps he had, had an ulterior motive in telling her to keep focused on why she had come here.

She waited until the three of them had headed away, before she continued towards the town. Seeing Roland, had just made her think about Shep. She had too many last conversations floating around in her head. He had been so ill, as he held her hand, and told her that she had to go. It was meant to be him, he would have done a much better job, than she ever could.

He could be dead by now in their timeline that was a reason above any to continue on, she had to safe him. Make sure his life was not the one she had seen.

She arrived on the outskirts much quicker than she had intended, her head filled with thoughts of home, and the people she had left behind.

She steadied herself, gulping in air, she had to act normal now. She thought through all the things the older ones had taught her. She checked her pockets, to see she still had the wallet they had given her.

"To Granny's" she said aloud, as a way to reassure herself. This whole situation was so bizarre, seeing everyone so young, not prepared to fight to the death at any minute, it would be too strange.

"You have to be strong, I wish you didn't have to go, I should go." Regina sighed, getting off the bed, where the two of them had been hugging.

"No, you can't go. It has to be me." Cassandra replied determinedly, following Regina, as she wiped tears from her cheeks.

Regina pulled her into a hug. "I can't stand the thought of losing you." She whispered into her hair.

"I'm going to make it so everything is better, you'll see. You won't even know I'm there to miss." Cassandra sighed, pulling away from Regina's arms. She immediately missed the warmth and comfort, but she knew now was the time that she had to stand alone.

Cassandra thought about how she had left Regina, she had been cold, almost cruel. It was the only way to do it though. She headed through the streets of fancy houses towards the centre of Storybrooke, a place of nightmares to her.

It was so different, the sun was shining, and people were smiling, going about their everyday business.

The idea that Granny had ever run a diner and hotel, had caused her so much amusement when she was first told. Granny had hit her hard on the back of her head for laughing.

But seeing Granny's Diner was strange, she felt angry, that once again, she was seeing a better life for the people she loved. A life that had been ripped away.

Cassandra jumped as someone tapped her shoulder, and nearly pulled out her weapons.

"Could I get past?" Henry smiled,

Cassandra had been standing in the entrance to Granny's blocking it to all patrons. She gasped as she saw him.

"Henry?" she smiled, and pulled him into an oxygen restricting hug.

"Do I know you?" he gasped, as she realised him.

Cassandra blushed, and stepped back, "Sorry, I thought you were someone else."

Henry smiled uncomfortably, and gave her a nod before heading into the Diner.

"God, I miss you." She held back tears, now was the time for strength.

"Here I go." She exhaled, and dashed into the diner, and to the counter.

"What can I get you?" Granny smiled, looking at the greasy haired girl, covered in dirt and worn out clothes, who had just ran into her diner.

"I was wanting a room." She muttered.

"You got money?" Granny instantly replied

Cassandra still starring at the floor, not wanting to make eye contact with Granny, took out the wallet, and slid it across the counter.

"That enough?"

"More than enough, how long you staying for?" Granny gasped looking at all the notes crammed into the wallet.

"Not sure."

"Follow me." Granny sighed, she hated the complete lack of eye contact this kid was giving her.

Cassandra followed, she looked around the place and immediately saw a few familiar faces, so she returned her eyes to the floor. She followed Granny up to a room, and accepted the key with a smile, then dashed into the room.

Cassandra collapsed onto the bed, letting out a sigh. She had made it, now the hard part began, she knew as a stranger in the town, word would soon spread. Then it was time to defeat the three evil sisters, before they had a chance to turn this calm town into the hell she knew.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Bold/Italic is the future**_

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><p><strong><em>Cassandra was running fast through the trees. Her heart pounding, she had lost Henry somewhere further back, but knew separating was safest for both of them.<em>**

**_She could no longer hear the man shouting. She paused, catching her breath, to look around the forest. She smiled as she could not see the man with the crossbow who had caught her and Henry unawares. _**

**_"Casey" she heard a voice echo through the forest. _**

**_"Henry?" she screamed in return, turning around to try and locate where his voice was coming from._**

**_"Lost little girl." Ingrid's cool voice taunted_**

**_Cassandra turned to see her appear from behind a tree. She immediately had her knife out ready to attack._**

**_Ingrid gave a small half smile, and with a wave of her hand the blade froze and shattered. _**

**_"What do you want?" Cassandra hissed, backing away slowly, her eyes darting._**

**_"I haven't seen anyone lose someone they cared about in a while, and I needed some entertainment."_**

**_"Henry? Where is he?" Cassandra gasped, anger rising within her._**

**_"Oh around." Emma smiled appearing from a nearby tree, Elsa by her side._**

**_Their royal dresses looked so out of place in this forest, making Cassandra feel even more ill at ease, she turned and began to run through the trees, screaming for Henry._**

**_"Casey…" she heard a quiet whisper._**

**_She turned to see him, crouched down, as she came closer, he stood up, confusion on his face. She smiled, it had been one of their mind games._**

**_"What are you…." He gasped in pain, stopping him from finishing speaking. Cassandra saw another arrow flying towards her, and quickly ducked, throwing a knife at the man, who fell instantly as it struck him square in the chest. _**

**_Normally she would have gone to check the man was actually dead, but now her priority was Henry. She rushed towards him holding him in her arms, as he tried not to scream in pain, and the arrow in his side._**

**_"I can get it out, at camp, we can fix this." Cassandra cried, applying pressure to his wound, as she helped pull up to a standing position. As soon as he was upright though, he tried to take a shaky step and fell once again into her arms._**

**_"We have to do more, Casey. We can't live like this," he gasped, as she rocked him in her arms, pulling out her radio._**

Cassandra awoke with a start, grabbing her knife from under her pillow, out of habit rather than fear.

She looked around the quaint room, it was strange being here, seeing these places before they were ripped apart and turned into a desolate wasteland. Except of course their house, she wondered where the three bitches were, if the town knew of the impending danger. She wanted to go to their home kill them all, but there was no guarantee that they were there, or that they were planning the curse yet. That was the problem with time travel, if she attacked then she might cause her future, that she came to prevent.

She stretched out in the comfy bed, she remembered when she last slept on a really comfy bed, beside Regina, in her vault. They had been talking about nothing, just boys and life, nothing about the three blondes, or the fear of living in a world where most people wanted to rip everyone else apart.

Cassandra pushed away the thoughts of all of them, none of them even knew who she was right now, thinking about them, would only make seeing them harder. Pulling her greasy hair out of its bobble, Cassandra had a warm shower. It was more wonderful that she had ever imagined, and she stayed under the water so long it wrinkled her fingers.

Cassandra sighed, she couldn't delay any longer, no matter how luxurious this place was. Cassandra headed downstairs, her hands in her pocket, playing with the loose change she had got. The diner was full of customers, the noise was almost unbearable to her. She was used to the silence of the tunnels, and the forest, even when they were all together they kept quiet.

She sat down on one of the stools.

"What would you like?" the brunette smiled at her.

"Erm, surprise me." Cassandra shrugged, eyes down, as she slide the money across to her.

"Right." She sighed, making her a hot chocolate, and then seeing how thin she was, ordering a burger.

Cassandra fell in love the moment she drank it, and had to remind herself not to drink it all at once.

"Morning." A cheerful voice called, then taking a seat beside Cassandra on the stool.

Cassandra gasped as she recognised the blonde, Emma. She was smiling, talking to the residents, like she was their friend.

"Just a coffee, Ruby, thanks." Emma smiled,

Emma out of the corner of her eye, saw the girl staring at her. She turned with an awkward smile. Cassandra put her head down immediately.

Emma turned back to Ruby, as she poured the coffee. She mouthed silently, "Who's that?" she wasn't used to seeing strange faces.

"She arrived last night, that's all I know." Ruby whispered back, passing her, her coffee, and heading off.

"Hi," Emma smiled, turning to the girl. "I'm Emma, the sheriff, I heard you are new in town."

"Yeah." Cassandra mumbled, refusing to look at her, she felt anger building, this woman was evil. She shouldn't be the sheriff.

"Are you here with anyone?" Emma asked, realising how young she was.

"No, just me."

Ruby out the burger down in front of Cassandra, giving a knowing smile to Emma, she knew how nosey Emma was.

"Have you always been here?" Emma asked cautiously, she didn't want to accidentally reveal this town's true nature to a passing stranger.

Cassandra paused in her devouring of the food in front of her.

"Yes…." She answered hesitantly, "I used to live in the woods."

"How'd you get the money to stay here?" Emma blurted out, forgetting herself for a second.

Cassandra met eyes with Emma, not even trying to conceal her venomous look.

"Don't worry Sherriff." She spat out the sheriff part, "I am not a criminal, like some."

Cassandra jumped up having eaten the burger in a frenzy of hunger, and headed out of the door. Leaving a startled Emma alone.

It was time to get some answers Cassandra decided, which meant finding the wisest person she knew, Regina.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Bold/Italic = Future**_

Cassandra walked down the main street, strange faces passing by her, giving her slightly odd looks. Everyone in this town knew each other, and she was a stranger. She disliked not having any allies, it immediately put her on the edge. Her hand fiddled with the top of her knife.

She realised that Elsa and Ingrid must not be here yet, the town hadn't been sealed with ice when she had arrived yesterday, and surely the moment the two of them arrived, they would go straight to Emma. This was good, she had time to warn them before the twisted sisters joined forces.

She wondered if she could actually go up to Regina's mansion door. It was in her world different, like everything it seemed, from this time. Emma had destroyed Regina's home with callously, with a great glee. Cassandra had found this out from Henry, one time he was feeling reminiscent. He wasn't very open Henry, but one time they had passed Regina's old home, he had told her about how it had been destroyed, he had been so close to tears. Then she suddenly realised, it had been his home. She sometimes forgot he must have once been a kid, whose whole life was torn apart.

"I'll see you at the town meeting." Granny called to a man Cassandra didn't recognise, meaning he would be dead soon.

If the residents of the town were trapped, a town meeting sounded like the perfect place to be. A small voice in the back of her head, stirred doubt, "are you really ready to see them all." It cooed, she knew her doubts where inconsequential, this was something she had to do.

She began following the man towards the mayor's office, she knew it had once been the office of Regina, but in her time it had been destroyed, as almost a way of reminding them, a new power was in charge.

Granny hurried past her, as she reached the main door, she got a strange look from Granny, but she didn't stop to question why Cassandra was there, to her relief. Cassandra had never had to lie, so was terrible at deception, it was another thing that made her wonder why she had been the one sent.

**_Regina sat in her vault, it was the one place she could be alone. The camp was so communal, it had to be to work. However that wasn't the way Regina was used to being, after all her whole live had been solitary. _**

**_Cassandra coughed to announce her presence, she didn't want to spook her. Regina smiled her back still to Cassandra._**

**_"I just wanted to get away from them all for a while." Regina, sighed, turning to Cassandra._**

**_"Me too." She smiled, sitting down beside her. _**

**_The two of them sat in silence, in the cool vault, Cassandra fidgeting. _**

**_"Are you ready to go?" Regina finally asked, she hated talking to her about her journey into the past, it reminded her of everything she had lost._**

**_"I'm scared, and I just…." Cassandra sighed, "I don't know why I'm going, I'm….I'm nothing special, Henry should go, or Roland." _**

**_"You won't be recognised. You are compassionate, and I believe you can do this Casey." Regina smiled, she gave her a slight nudge, "And besides I want all of the tent."_**

**_Cassandra smiled, "Your worried they won't want to leave the past aren't you? That they will want to be with their family. Of course my family would be there…." Cassandra trailed off._**

**_The honest truth was she didn't know who her family was, Regina had raised her, well the entire community had chipped in, but mainly Regina, and no one, had ever hinted as to who her parents were._**

**_"Knowing changes nothing." Regina said quietly, standing up, and wandering over to Henry's storybook, absent-mindedly flicking through the pages. _**

Cassandra sat down cautiously in the office that was once Regina's she heard people whispering, as Snow White handed out leaflets. She smiled at the baby in her arms, who must be Neal, however no matter how delightful she found it to see Neal as a happy little baby, instead of the frighten young man she knew. It was seeing Charming, that she had to stop herself from laughing aloud at seeing.

The Charming in her world he was not this fresh faced cute looking happy father, he was a scarred, toned man, with long hair. This man in front of her looked so different, it was something she knew immediately she could never get used to.

The people of the town began to pile in, it frightened Cassandra how few faces she recognised. Then she appeared, Marion.

Of course, Cassandra cursed herself quietly, of course she was alive, Roland's mother, with her son and husband Robin. A happy family, that was about to be ripped apart.

Snow began speaking, and Cassandra was barely listened, she was instead staring at Marion. She suddenly realised there was a commotion going on, tuning back in to the main conversation, she realised the ice wall was up, and Elsa was in town. However there was no mention of Ingrid, in fact Snow seemed to be defending Elsa.

That's was when she saw Marion collapse, Robin immediately at her side. Cassandra saw the white streak in her hair.

"Regina, you need Regina." She heard herself saying, as she rushed to her side, her hand touching her icy skin. She couldn't help it, she couldn't watch Marion die again, and she knew Marion obviously didn't die this way, she was in her future, and therefore Regina had to come. Marion was in hers and Regina's future, she didn't die now. She couldn't.


End file.
